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tv   ABC7 News 600PM  ABC  April 15, 2013 6:00pm-7:00pm PDT

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visual police presence at the city's landmarks, like the chicago theater. even union station. many commuters heading home ran into bomb-sniffing police dogs and extra police officers on hand at the city's train and bus stations. city officials say there's been no specific threat to the city of chicago, but they are not taking any chances. of course, remaining extra vigilant. chicago has two major airports, o'hair and midway, millions of people pass through every year to get through one part of the country to the other part. and authorities tell us they are keeping their eyes open for anything suspicious. there's a chicago blackhawks came tonight versus the dallas stars, some 20,000 people fit in that stadium. we can expect security to be on high alert there tonight. officials tell us there will be a moment of silence for the victims in boston at that blackhawks game tonight. so a heightened sense of security here in chicago, but
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many trying to operate as normally as possible, given the circumstances. >> thank you so much, alex. from chicago to los angeles. also games taking place there. of course heightened security measures and abc's cecilia vega is waiting there. >> just like alex in chicago, we want to emphasize here in southern california, that there has been no incredible threat, but heightened security at this evening's dodgers game. it's yet to begin, but there's an increased police presence here. this is the type of event that law enforcement are focused on, areas where large crowds are expected to gather, not just sporting events, but shopping malls and transit hubs. we're seeing the same thing in airports, like los angeles international airport. travelers can expect do see bomb-sniffing dogs, increased
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police, extra security going through the airport, not just at lax, but airports all around the region. police are also reaching out on social media, twitter and facebook, asking the public this evening to be especially vigilant. again, we want to emphasize there has been no incredible threat in southern california, but the message from law enforcement all around california tonight, to the public, is to watch out, to be alert, and to report anything that seemed out of the ordinary. >> all right, see something, say something, taking on a whole new heightened meaning. thanks so much. now we want to go to our abc producer kendall heap, because she was there, near the finish line in boston at the moment the bombs went off. kendall, i want to bring you in once again, describe to us once more exactly what you felt because you were there in the first seconds. >> diane, my brother-in-law and i were watching right at the corner of hereford and boylston street as the runners take the final lap towards the finish
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line. all of a sudden you hear and feel a large explosion and see white smoke, a plume of smoke, 20 to 30 feet high go up in the air. about five to ten seconds later, another explosion. i saw a fireball and more white smoke as then chaos ensued and folks realized something was wrong. >> and the air smelled of sul fur? >> it did. the wind was blowing and it began to smell like sulfur and runners were diverted, very confused, not knowing whether to continue. but police got to the finish line soon as they could. >> and was there anyone who came to you and told you what it was? how did you learn? because you were one of the bystanders there who tried to figured out what just happened. how did you figure out that this was indeed what was feared? >> well, we saw police officers
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directing everyone off the street. they wanted to clear the street, stopped the runners, tried to get the pedestrian off the street. but a lot of folks ran toward the explosion, trying to help those injured. and police who are lining the routes of boston streets for the marathon anyway, completely ran right in just moments later trying to help those injured. >> all right, kendall heap, again, the entire abc news team spanned out across the country, but we thank you so much for your early and completely vivid and horrifying reports from today. thank you. and we are hearing of so many grave injuries, severe burns, amputations, one hospital saying the emergency room was like a war zone. dr. sebastian, a trauma surgeon at jamaica hospital here in new york. help me understand, when mass general, when a hospital in boston gets the call this has happened, how do they know where to begin? >> one of the things that all
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hospitals of that size in particular have in place is a disaster plan. we practice these a few times a year. we do it here in new york at least every six months, those plans have in place mock exercises. we've put our resources in play. we even have fake patients come into the hospital. so having run those exercises repeatedly, gives you some preparation. >> it's one thing to have a plan, another to have two bombs going off at the boston marathon. >> absolutely. i mean, certainly this is completely unexpected. no matter how good your plan is, you will be overwhelmed. you're going to be dealing with a huge volume of patient with a wide spectrum of injuries. it's not easy. but what i've seen so far, they're doing an amazing job. >> you've talked about the wide spectrum of injuries. we've heard of severe injuries to people's legs, severe burns. >> absolutely. the heat from a blast like this can cause severe burns. that's an injury that takes a
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long time to heal from, requires multiple operations and interventions. but the amputations are certainly the most traumtic things. what kills people is the brain shaking, it can cause instantaneous or delayed death. >> like being in iraq or afghanistan with an ied. >> it looks very much the same. and as you said, incredible response by the emergency teams there in boston. thank you. now we want to turn now to pierre thomas for more on the investigation. pierre, anything new at this hour? >> the information we have, there's a person at a local hospital up there in boston that they are talking to tonight. trying to get a sense of whether he's simply a witness or something more. that person's background is being checked as we speak. they're trying to get a mosaic of his life and determine whether he was involved or not.
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the other key thing going on, they're looking at the crime scene, trying to get pieces of those bombs, those two portable devices left at the scene to give them an indication of, is there a signature, a particular group or organization that uses these types of bombs? that will tell them a great deal. >> any sense, are they still going door to door, car to car along this 26-mile route? >> one of the things complicated the situation, a lot of people left their packages and pocket books and backpacks along the running route. so now, police have to go through each one of those items to see if there were any additional bombs left behind. further deceleracomplicating th situation. law enforcement officials and fbi are talking to witnesses to see what they saw. the other thing is surveillance tape. they're looking for any surveillance tape that might
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give them an idea who might have left those bombs behind. >> i know this is a labor intensive investigation when you have bomb-sniffing dogs, but maybe it's a naive question. is it possible to deploy a whole host of dogs along this route and get an answer? >> believe me, if they have those type of canine units available, those dogs will be deployed tonight. they will also use various types of technology to scan those packages. again, right now, they have to secure the scene as nightfall comes along, to make sure nothing is taken from the scene that might be useful in the investigation. >> and just one quick question, when you started calling today, when were the first sentences said to you by the people who watch homeland security? >> well, the difficult thing for them was they were caught flat-footed by this incident obviously. there was no information on any threat coming in that said this would happen. we were on a different story with fbi officials who scrambled
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to respond once this took place. >> all right, pierre thomas, as we have said, working all day and will be working all night on this. abc's chief white house correspondent jonathan karl has been at the white house today tracking the reaction of the president. >> the president was informed within minutes and brought together his national security team. he met in the white house with his chief of staff and with his homeland security adviser. got on the phone with the fbi director muller, directed the response and then with officials up in boston. but diane, when the president came out a short while ago to talk to us in the briefing room, he vowed that his administration would get to the bottom of who was behind it and hold them responsible. and he also had a message for the people of boston. >> i directed the full resources of the federal government to help state and local authorities protect our people, increase security around the united
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states as necessary, and investigate what happened. the american people will say a prayer for boston tonight. and michelle and send our deepest thoughts and prayers to the families of the victims in the wake of this senseless loss. >> the president and his top national security advisers have also been briefing members on capitol hill, key leaders like the chairwoman of the senate intelligence committee who not long ago, told abc, it is a terrorist incident. it could be foreign, it could be home-grown, but there's no question, this is terrorism. now, the president didn't use that word when he came out to talk in the briefing room a short while ago. when i asked about that, a senior official said there's no question this was an act of terror. anytime you have multiple explosions like this, these are acts of terror. but the official went on to tell me, however, we don't know how carried out this attack. a thorough investigation will have to determine whether or not
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it was planned and carried out by a terrorist group, whether it be foreign or domestic. >> right there across the street from you, pennsylvania avenue still shut down. any other heightened security you can see around you at the white house? >> yeah, this started happening within minutes of what happened in boston. we started noticing they had rolled out the yellow police tape out in the plaza that used to be pennsylvania avenue, right in front of the white house and had pushed the public back into lafayette park. looking out there now, still the same situation. the area immediately surrounding the white house has been closed off. it's basically a matter, diane, of extending the security perimeter. those who work at the white house are still able to come and go. we're still able to come and go, so it isn't a total lockdown of the kind you saw on september 11, but it is clearly heightened security here at the white house. >> all right, jonathan karl standing by.
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and still ahead right here on "world news," more details on the bomb, in boston pouring in. videos pouring in, the latest on this developing story, breaking news on the investigation when we return.
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as we heard from pierre thomas, authorities are still searching for any indication who
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might be behind these bombings in boston. they are studying the image of first the bomb and then the other one that detonated. abc's consultant brad garrett, a veteran of the fbi, his specialties taking clues like that, and profiling targets of investigation. thanks for being with us. where do they begin tonight? >> this is an agenda driven crime. in other words, somebody or some group wanted to make a statement today. now, was that driven by an organization or was it an individual? so the key is, can they hone that down quickly? the problem, if it's an individual, he or she may not be connected to a group. >> when we talk about signatures with bombs, what are we talking about? >> well, that's the components of the bomb. typically home-made bombs, like you can learn to build a bomb on the internet, are sloppy bombs
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basically. and they're not designed -- the timers aren't designed in a professional way. if this bomb was built by someone that was a bomb maker from iraq or afghanistan, there are signatures of those types of bombs. and if it's not that, and it looks like it's devices that were purchased locally or here in the united states, that then gives the investigators another direction. >> so the fact that we're told it was small, apparently portable, doesn't necessarily lead you in any direction, domestic, foreign, any particular direction? >> no, unfortunately. because obviously there have been a number of backpack or small device bombs used around the world by al qaeda and like-minded groups. the only thing i can say, this window from april 15th to april 20th, we've had a lot of domestic terrorism historically and i would be looking at that. >> thanks, brad.
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coming up next on "world news," new eyewitness testimony from the moment the bombs detonated.
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and now i want to bring in a mother who was in marathon there with her husband, her two young daughters in boston. i think we have a photo. can we bring it up? i want to show you, there she was approaching the finish line, as we know. it was a traumatic event for
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everyone involved. are you there, are you joining us? >> yes, i'm here. >> terrifying to watch that scene. tell me where your daughters were and what you felt and saw. >> honestly, i was so happy to see my daughters and my husband. i had just -- i was ironically running down the left-hand side, if you're watching on the screen, the right-hand side where the blast was. three miles prior, slapping hands with wonderful spectators that there were supporting us. i knew they'd be on the right-hand side so i moved over so my kids could see me finish. i was ironic because the blast happened right there. when i looked to my left, there were runners down, there were people down. it was just so terrifically horrific. >> what are you saying to your daughters tonight? >> they are in bed right next to me, just trying to decompress.
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we're trying to make sure that everything's good for them. and that they can keep talking to us about it. >> what did your husband say when you finally reached him? >> it was amazing. because it was a scene that was just so chaotic. the first blast happened, and then the second blast happened about ten seconds later. i immediately looked over to the bleachers because we thought another one might happen. he's a big guy, about 240 pounds, and 6'4", and he had one daughter under each arm. so i wanted to make sure he got out of there fast as possible. >> it is a stunning picture to watch. so good to hear your voice. be safe and close with your family tonight and we know you will
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and we thank you so much for watching tonight. all of the developments throughout the night at abcnews.com. "nightline" with a full wrap-up. i'll see you again tomorrow night. but boston, as you know, is one of america's great cities, filled with resilience and spirit. so on this day, when something terrible happened, we want to remind you of all those who rushed to help.
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♪ ♪ ♪
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four hours and nine minutes into the boston marathon, watch what happens. a blast near the finish line, the first of two explosions that triggered chaos on the race route and heightened fears of terrorism around the country. good evening, everyone. >> in 45 minute minutes announced a third fatality in the explosion. abc 7 news a bay area boy is among the 115 or more injured. the 12-year-old aaron hern suffered shrapnel wounds to his leg. he will be in the hospital up to 10 days. he is the son of a runner. these pictures frr his mother's facebook page. >> the explosions rocked the country. police agencies from coast to coast are now on heightened
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alert. the bombs went off near the finish line just seconds apart. about 600 feet from each other. this is video that i will straits the people screaming following the blast and then, a second explosion. all of this taking place on patriot's day, a massachusetts holiday. >> here is the latest on the investigations to this point. investigators talking to some people of interest at some of the hospitals where many were taken but stresses police have no suspects at this time. at the explosion scene, investigators are interviewing victims and searching every backpack left behind. we know who two, small portable devices were used.
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abc news is reporting 133 people were wounded. >> a number of people witnessed the explosion. security events from here to london are now stepped up as a result. >> as you can imagine, some of the bay area's prominent marathonners were in boston for the race. most were finished and still near the finish line. it was a perfect day for running. >> it's just chaotic. >> dean is a well known marathonner. >> there are people running in. there is confusion. some networks went down. people trying to account for friends and family. where is my runner? where is the family? so it was crazy.
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>> sue was walking away from the finish line moments after the race. >> we heard one explosion and then, a second explosion, all of us turned and you can see the smoke. >> we heard explosions going off. >> jennifer was at the medical center near the finish line. >> i hadn't found my husband at this point. >> in boston, the marketing director for san francisco marathon. >> we do have emergency measures in place. we hope for the best. >> kathy owns fleet feet and is tended the marathon last year as a spectator, she thought security was tight. >> they check everybody. i was kind of where the bomb went off but they check your backpacks, they check to see if you have anything on you.
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>> and now another young runner tells us the mood in boston is somber, people are staying off the streets. a contrast from how it would normally be in what is, for boston a festive occasion. >> thank you. oof at bakea breakers race organizers saying the events under score the importance of working with law enforcement to assess and update our security plans and procedures, security has been tightened in all major landmarks in the bay area. the police chief says officers are out in force. >> officers were put on the street reassuring the public we're out here in numbers.
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>> police say passengers should zpokt see more security. >> president obama says law enforcement will be relentless in finding those responsible. the secret service expanded it's perimeter of the white house today. here is a picture of the president given the news from boston. >> we still do not know who did this or y people shouldn't jump to conclusions before we have the facts but make no mistake. we'll get to the bomb both yom of this and find out who did this, why they did this. any response -- any responsible individuals and groups will feel the weight of justice. >> fbi is taking the lead in this investigation coordinating with state and local law enforcement in boston. >> needless to say sporting convenient use on heightened
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alert tonight that. is the case in oakland. a's and warriors are playing. we're live with that part of the story. >> entrance to the coliseum is to the right. a's fans converging in this one area. police say they're at a heightened state after wareness looking for anything in these crowds. oracle arena will be using metal detectors tonight but we've seen alameda county bomb squad conducting a sweep of both stadiums. all is clear. crowds themselves seem april thetic about bombings in boston. some were unaware attacks happened and others felt confident security would take care of everything.
quote
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we spoke with two ladies say they walked through the front gate and sat down before security noticed they had slipped past them. we just wanted to get out of the wind. so windy. >> how easy to walk through? >> just opened the door and went n it wasn't locked. and i saw other people go in. i said let's just go in. >> a lot of people congregating in an area tonight. that is the reason for police to be concerned in light of the attacks. the a's get underway at 7:00 against houston astros and warriors tip off against the spurs at 7:30. >> now, abc 7 news reporter ama daetz is headed to boston and will be tweeting updates as well.
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>> the three teens accused over sexual assaulting a high school student that later killed herself will appear in a hearing tomorrow. the family of audrey potts is stepping up efforts to keep the boys charged in custody. we are live to begin our team coverage. david? >> audrey potts mother, stepmother and father will be here tomorrow to seek a judge not to release those three teenagers from custody. they outlined their reasoning for the first time.. >> these are the mothers, stepmother and father of audrey pott. thursday's arrest of three teenagers has them seeking justice. >> she made her feeling clear in messages we're left to find. there is no doubt the reason
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why audrey took her life z three people who were arrested are responsible for her death. >> stepmother is referring to messages sent to friends in them saying her life was ruined after allegedly be sexual assaulted after drinking at a friend's house. >> these boys, these young men have a history what. they did was disguflting. what they did was they did it sober. >> the parents will be in court tomorrow to keep the three teenagers in custody. they are also filing a civil suit claiming wrongful death. private investigators say they are running into silence trying to talk to the 13 students at the party ask their parents. >> responses to my children were traumatized and i assure you not as much as the pott family and we'll get back to
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you. i feel like i'm selling avon. the door gets shut in my face. >> her mother wishes she turned to an adult. >> i think she tried to reach out to friends for help. but she didn't reach out to an adult that knew how to handle the gravity of the situation. >> officials say she did not reach out to the school for help or seek counseling. in san jose, abc 7 news. >> thank you. audrey's suicide was first attributed to photos of the attack going viral it turns out to be far from fact it took a team of student reporters to cover the truth in all of this. >> in campus newspaper a team of student reporters interviewed dozen of schoolmates and concluded pictures of audrey pott being
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sexual assaulted were texted to other students not shared on social media sites. it's a story audrey's father addressed at the news conference. >> the student newspaper reported i believe that they have evidence 10 kids have seen the photographs. we'd like the names. >> an editor penned an opinion piece. he writes, if there was a viral photo it wasn't very viral. >> in her opinion the whole school is talking about it. i don't care fit was 10 people or 100 people who knew. >> i did contact the writer of the piece. he and his parents refused an interview. but the edit torz of the paper have added a note to that piece saying they support efforts to combat cyber bullying audrey's parents
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plead for witnesses to come forward. >> there is a difference between being a witness and being a suspect. so lps if you're a witness, please come forward that. is what witnesses do. >> detectives have described difficulty collecting evidence in this case. one investigator says students can hide pictures and texts. >> i encourage firnts take a look at kids phones they're going off line and getting apps for texting. those are difficult to recover. it's a secret way for them to communicate with friends. >> >> we have more still to come stil to cover. coming up the fight over warriors wooter front arena. critics are taking their case to sacramento. >> you're going hear from two north bay paramedic who's stepped into action to save the live 6 an 8-year-old
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baseball player. >> still windy out there. where wind advisories remain up and when
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looks like warriors career cleared a key hurdle today towards building a new facility at the foot of the bay bridge. the state assembly's natural resources committee voted this afternoon and abc 7 news is in sacramento with the str story. >> assembly man is pushing the bill trying to get the state legislature to appear for a new stadium parking par skbraj retail space. >> these with the public trust. the lawyer's press says the project will be privately financed and return $19 million a year in tax autos i have never been involved in a project offers so much private capitol investment and many measurable public benefits.
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>> some residents of the neighborhood have joined with the sierra club and bay keeper in opposing the bill because they want the proposal for the site to go through local committees. >> today, outreach must allowed to do their job autos gail cahill is an attorney and resident of the neighborhood. >> anyone driven down to a ball game knows what happened on the embark dareo our roadways are overtax ootd warriors president told me the transportation planner is working on it. >> it's a study not just focused on warriors project but the water front transportation system. >> opponents are worried they'll get ahead of the planning. today, not every member was there to vote but the chair indicated it looks like votes will be there to get the bill out of committee.
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>> if that is where we'll have to take it up again, we will. >> they're hoping to have the stadium up and running by 2017. >> a young baseball player continues to recover after suffering heart failure. the 8-year-old was playing when a pitch hit him in the chest. the boy ran, then collapsed. two parents at the game were paramedics and rushed to give him cpr. they say the ball hit the boy's chest so hard it made his heart stop. >> this is not a kid who had an issue of cardiac disease this, child's heart was interrupted by a baseball to the chest. >> tonight, the league will discuss the possibility of keeping a defibrilator at field. is he doing okay and could be
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reese ree leased as early as tomorrow. >> something people thought they'd never see happen is taking place. construction on a project to extend bart to san jose. you can see a crew beginning the big deal. right now the road is partially closed and it's going to affect trafx for three to four months as crews dig towards san jose. the ekt project is the largest in silicon valley history with a price tag of $2.3 million supposed to be completed by 2018. officials believe they can have it finished as much as a year early. >> keep a firm grip on what you're carrying tonight. it's windy out there. this photo of a large tree that just snapped in the wind. happened this afternoon.
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the storm gusts may have knocked down this giant tree in san francisco this afternoon. the 50 foot tree left a dent on a car and scraped side of a car passing by. it was gusty. >> it's still gusty out there. >> this evening, we'll see winds and so far, wind gusts 50 miles per hour but earlier, ocean beach gusts to 63 miles per hour. sprinkles reported in cue kaia. activities started to die down as far as moisture is concerned. you can see winds out of the west 41 in san carlos, livermore reporting gusts 35 miles per hour. wind advisory up until 9:00 p.m. tonight. gusts to 45 miles per hour that covers coastal north bay
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and peninsula coast we do have gale warnings up inside of the san francisco bay running until 9:00 p.m. tonight. it's windy out there. here are the temperatures. 51 in san francisco. it's 57 degrees in oakland. half moon bay dropped to 48 degrees, 48 miles per hour winds at 7:00 p.m. tonight picking up close to 50 miles per hour at 10:00 p.m. then winds start to ro drop off a bit fairfield 32 miles per hour winds. and into afternoon. so by morning as those winds drop off, skies are clear, we're expecting a chilly one in the north bay valleys,
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upper 30s in morgueal hill. we're expecting less wind expected. it's going to be breezy. 68 in napa. sunshine for you there. here is a lk at the accu-weather forecast. warmer weather expected wednesday into the weekend continuing into monday. high pressure builds in. low to mid-80s inland. >> all right. thank you. >> an unfortunate story. >> yes. the soccer story and apology from earthquakes after one player
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good evening, everybody. we've been reporting 117th edition of the worst onmarathon was marred by two explosions by the finish line.
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the explosions would occur four hours and nine minutes into the race this, happened on patriots day. jackie robinson day at park. boston winning to sweep tampa bay. and that game finished about an hour before the bombs went off. back here at home earthquakes under damage control mode after alan gordon made an antigay slur getting into a heated argument with will johnson of the timbers the suspension could be as high as three games. last night saying the language came during a heated moment
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and does not reflect my feet feelings toward the gay lesbian community. and read for fans i will do my best to take actions to make sure we can be viewed as a beacon of diversity, community and equality. and cal guard was taken ninth tonight in a draft chosen by the indiana fever averaging 16 points per game as a senior. this abc 7 sports report brought to you by orchard supply hardware. >> thank you very much. >> join me tonight at 9:00 coming up social media steps up to help in the boston
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bombing. how two companies are reuniting family and friends of runners there when this happened. >> when hearing from runners just feet from this blast including a local victim from martinez and of course, carolyn and i will be back at 11:00 tonight for latest information still developing out of boston tonight. stay with us. we'll keep you up to date. >> be sure to follow us on twitter. we'll have latest updates for you there as well. and that does it for this edition of abc 7 news. >> appreciate your time. we'll see you again at 9:00 and 11:00.
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this is "jeopardy!" pleacome today's contestants -- an investment analyst from new york, new york...
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a technical writer from amherst, new hampshire... and our returning champion, an orthopedic surgeon from kennett square, pennsylvania... and now here is the host -- alex trebek! thank you, johnny. ladies and gentlemen, weto our show. happy birthday, mom. and, matt, nice to have you back with us. matt had a great day on friday, winning a lot of money, so, lisa and tim, lcome you're up against it toda. he's a good champion, but i'm sure you're good challengers, also. let's go to work in this first round. good luck to all three of you as we reveal these categories for you. we start off with... hey, there's a theme here. you scan the clue and identify the cat breed.
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f-l-u -- that comes up in each correct response. and finally, good news. alex: matt, where do we start? let's start with doctor! doctor! for $200, please. matt. who is the fugitive? good. doctor! $400, please. tim. who is dr. quinn, medicine woman? yes. doctor! doctor! for $600. tim. who is dr. dre? correct. doctor! doctor! $800. and that would be dr. doom. tim, back to you. doctor! doctor! $1,000, please.
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tim. who is kapoor? no. lisa. who is mindy kaling? you got her, and you're on the board with $1,000 and in the lead. you need a lab test for $200, please. matt. what is anemia? good. lab test, $400. tim. what are allergies? you're right. it's the "flu" for $200. matt. what is fluent? correct. you need a lab test, $600. matt. what is glucose? lab test, $800.

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